Let’s forget law for a moment. Let’s look at logic, humanity and corporate objective. As an HR manager, you should know the worth of the designation in terms of a range of salary or CTC. Once you accept a candidate based on the qualifications and qualities, once you describe the person his role he has his idea of what salary or CTC range to expect. These ranges might or might not overlap. In case they overlap, you should offer lowest salary of the overlap range and he should ask highest salary of overlap range. You might end up in between. But did you notice that both of the ranges were independent of the previous salary. When you offer a higher salary only on the basis of previous salary, what does it mean? You are buying this resource from his previous company at a premium irrespective of his worth to you or market or previous company or the individual himself.

This is not only inhuman commodification of humanity but it also illogical with corporate objective in the background. Look at this example: Suppose you refuse me (having 8.5/10 rating in your acceptability band of 7/10 to 10/10) a salary of Rs. 100 because my old salary was only Rs. 50 and wanted to give a hike of only 25% (Rs. 62.5 as offer). You interview another candidate with salary Rs. 60 and quality 7.5/10. You would offer him Rs 75 or Rs 7.5 more, for 1/10 less quality. This is absurd.

The world is not so ideal that the individual who started with higher salary were bright right from the outset. There is a great scope for luck, being right place right time combination, nepotism, academic brand sell, salary bargaining ability, flexibility to move into sectors and functions, etc. How does all this count?

Whatever test you took just now is the most important one. As an HR manager, to take care of the credentials of the past, you must ask the operations manager to work out the exact worth of the resource. There ends role of the previous organization. Now what matters is whether you want the candidate or not, whether he is your range or not and whether there is one more better option or not, of course quality being always paid heed to.